“Hold on,” Jasper said. “We’re part of a special unit within the FBI — ”

Temple held up a hand, stopping Jasper. He hadn’t realized how proprietary she was regarding SAG. “Yes, I head up an investigative unit called the Scientific Anomalies Group. We have reason to believe there is something going on in the area involving a cult. We’ve also found traces of an element a scientist attached to SAG has never seen before.”

Temple paused. Steve, Penny, and Carlos didn’t flinch or blink.

Temple continued, “This element is foreign to our world. My Agent thinks it’s alien, from another universe. I think it may be demonic in origin.”

Penny’s eyes flicked toward Steve. Her father chuckled. “Aliens or devils, huh?” He scratched at his beard. “You’re serious?”

“All right. How about this,” Temple said, “do you know anything about mangled bodies and strange figures made of mist or haze?”

Steve and Penny glanced at one another again — clearly aware of what Temple said, and clearly hiding something.

Jasper decided to take a different tack: “We’re not getting anywhere.” He walked toward and pointed at the aquariums. “What sort of fish do you have in the tanks?”

“Not fish. Sea squirts.”

“Salt water tanks, huh?” Jasper bent over and peered inside. “So, you grow mushrooms and have a bunch of sea squirts. This is truly an eclectic machine shop.”

“We spend a lot of time here,” Penny said, “and we each have our little diversions.”

“Okay, back to business,” Jasper said, and moved away from the aquariums. “What sort of metal work do you perform here?”

“We specialize in stainless steel and exotic alloys.”

“Ah, okay. I see.” But Jasper didn’t, really. His familiarity with machining was passing and, in any event, quite a few years back. One of his cousins in Tennessee had owned a small machine shop but he and Jasper had never been close.

He stood near a desk and glanced at the papers littering the surface. Temple spoke up — good, a distraction while he stole a few furtive glances.

“Ever deal with thermite?” Temple asked.

“No.” Steve, Penny, and Carlos all answered at once.

Jasper scanned the desktop: a few papers with Wayland Precision on the letterhead, a notebook, a ledger, and poking from the corner of another notebook, a symbol. No, a hammer, and arcing atop the hammer the words: Völundr’s Hammer.

“Find anything interesting, Agent Wilde?” Penny asked.

“You can call me Jasper. Sorry, I was intrigued by the hammer on this piece of paper.” He tapped the paper in question.

“Oh, that,” she said, waving as if the paper were a trifle. “I considered re-naming the company Völundr’s Hammer at one time, but Wayland Precision was my father’s brain child, so we let the name be.”

“This may be a silly question, but why Wayland Precision?” Jasper glanced at Steve, Carlos, and settled on Penny. “I mean, no one named Wayland works here, right? Does Wayland mean something to you?” He turned his attention back to Steve.

“It’s an old blacksmith thing, from Northern Europe — a fairly common tale, that of Wayland the Smith. Do you have any other questions for Carlos? We’re busy, and running a business, you know.”

“Of course,” Temple said, “but I’m not sure I understand why Carlos was at the Euclid.”